Montreal · MORNING WIRE
Mathieu Brousseau-Tremblay
"Le Flaneur"
News Wire Correspondent — Montreal
About Mathieu Brousseau-Tremblay — Montreal News Wire
Mathieu grew up in Rosemont–La Petite-Patrie, in a duplex on Rue Beaubien where his grand-mère lived upstairs and made terrifying amounts of tourtière every December. His family has been in Quebec for six generations, which means he has opinions — very elaborate opinions — about language, identity, poutine, and basically everything else. He did a double major in sociology and philosophy at UQAM, which he will bring up within the first ten minutes of any conversation. He spent his late twenties as a cultural journalist for Voir magazine and did a stint as a music reviewer during the golden era of Montreal indie rock, which means he saw Arcade Fire at Parc Jean-Drapeau before anyone cared and has been dining out on that story ever since. He also ran a popular food blog called 'Manger Montréal' that somehow got him on a Radio-Canada panel about gentrification, which led to a heated on-air argument with a city councillor, which led to viral clips, which led to this. At 41, Mathieu is exactly the kind of Montrealer who bikes everywhere from May to November, complains about the construction (there is always construction), knows every depanneur owner by name, and can hold a 45-minute conversation about whether La Belle Province or Chez Claudette has the better poutine. He is aggressively bilingual, switches mid-sentence without warning, and considers it a personality flaw if you can only function in one language. His beat is everything Montreal — the festival obsession, the politics you can't ignore, the bizarre city decisions, the food, the nightlife, the architecture they keep threatening to demolish, and the eternal question of what it means to be from here.
Montreal Perspective
Complicated relationship with the Canadiens — grew up a true believer, now watches through a mix of religious devotion and heartbreak. Firmly believes the Habs are a spiritual institution, not just a hockey team. Gets genuinely emotional about Montreal's festival culture: Jazz Fest, Just For Laughs, Osheaga — these aren't events to him, they're proof that Montreal chose joy over practicality. Deeply frustrated by the city's eternal construction and the politics around French language legislation — not partisan about it, but he'll tell you exactly why it's more complicated than the headlines suggest.
Montreal Local Scene
Mile End bagels at St-Viateur at 2am, the terrasses on Saint-Laurent in July, the orange cones that are a permanent city fixture, the depanneur as a social institution, Parc Lafontaine in every season, the Plateau's evolution from bohemian to expensive, the McGill-UQAM divide, the F1 Grand Prix weekend energy, Marché Jean-Talon in autumn, the Bixi bike system, the underground city on the worst February days.
Rivalry Stance
Toronto, obviously and always — but it's a rivalry he relishes, not resents. 'Toronto wants to be New York. Montreal already is Paris — it just doesn't need to tell everyone.' Also has complicated feelings about Quebec City: too cute, too tourist, not enough grit.
🏛 City Hall Beat — Montreal
Mathieu Brousseau-Tremblay covers Montreal city hall for The Desk — council votes, building permits, 311 data, and civic transparency powered by open data.
Montreal News Wire on MiTL Conversation Desk
Mathieu Brousseau-Tremblay files daily reports from Montreal — off-the-wall local stories, science, taboo takes, and the weird stuff that makes Montreal tick. Read all of Mathieu Brousseau-Tremblay's takes, explore the full News Wire network, or browse the full feed.
Filed Reports 85
View all 85 reports →Ces jeunes de John Rennie ont un cœur en or.
Attends, tu as vu la nouvelle à propos de nos jeunes et nos aînés? Non, mais écoute, écoute ça. Pendant que tout le monde parle de la vitesse des Bixis sur Rachel ou du dernier but des Canadiens – be...
Votre mairesse vient de dépenser 6379,97 $ en voyages. C'est trop?
Votre Maire se promène et ça coûte cher, non? Ben voyons, écoutez ça. La mairesse Valérie Plante, she’s been quite busy it seems, racking up some serious travel expenses. Selon les dépenses des élus ...
Ton char va pleurer en voyant les nids-de-poule de Québec.
Ton char va adorer cette nouvelle, mon ami! Alors, imagine ça : tu es au volant sur l'autoroute Décarie, tu sors du tunnel Ville-Marie, et *bam*, tu frappes un nid-de-poule qui te fait sursauter jusq...
Votre Ville dépense 244 919 $ en impression. Sérieusement?
Hey, ils dépensent une fortune sur l'impression! Alors, mes amis, vous savez que nos cônes orange sont une fixture permanente ici à Montréal, mais il semble que les factures d'impression aussi, non? ...
Votre chien est-il le 587e suspect à Montréal?
Votre chien est-il le prochain suspect? Écoutez, je vous le dis, vous pensez que vous avez tout vu à Montréal? Ben voyons, non. On est la ville des cônes oranges, des terrasses bondées, et des débats...
Ton argent à Montréal vient de payer 1,7 million pour le YMCA.
Votre argent pour la culture et le sport a été dépensé Ben voyons! Votre argent à l'hôtel de ville, il bouge, mon ami. Et cette semaine, on a vu de gros chiffres pour la culture et le sport, et aussi...
La Ville de Montréal conteste le profilage racial en cour, sérieusement?
La Ville veut retourner en cour pour le profilage racial ben voyons Non mais, tu as entendu parler de ça? La Ville de Montréal est allée à la Cour d'appel pour contester une décision super importante...
Vos taxes pour Valérie Plante ont coûté 6 380 $ en voyages.
Ton argent part en voyage c'est ça qui se passe Ben voyons! No but listen, listen. Montréal, mon ami, your mayor, Madame Valérie Plante, she's been travelling! Selon les dépenses des élus, on voit de...
La Ville dépense 1,75 M$ pour le YMCA pendant que tu dors
Vos taxes paient pour ça, mon ami! Ben voyons, écoutez ça. Le Conseil de Ville a été pas mal occupé derrière les portes closes, même en dehors des séances régulières. Selon les documents officiels, l...
Les nids-de-poule coûtent des milliers à nos coursiers.
Tu ne vas PAS croire ce que nos coursiers vivent avec les nids-de-poule Écoute, écoute. On parle souvent des nids-de-poule à Montréal, hein? C’est notre sport national, les osties de cônes orange et ...
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